CUMMING, Ia. — Dan Fillius picked cherry tomatoes, sweet corn, cucumbers and cantaloupe last week, the start of what eventually will be about 100 acres of fruits, vegetables, flowers, orchards and meadows.

The farm Fillius is developing will be the center of Middlebrook, a $260 million home, townhome, commercial and office project on 540 acres near Cumming.

The area's rolling hills, ponds and timber will eventually be home to central Iowa's first "agrihood," a planned community of about 1,000 homes built around a working farm and community gardens.

It's one of more than 200 agrihoods that have cropped up across the country, a trend that appeals to consumers who want a slice of country life — big gardens, nature and outdoor recreation — near urban centers.

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Dan Fillius, an ISU extension specialist, walks through a row of crops as he makes his daily to-do list on the vegetable farm that will be the focus of Cumming's agrihood housing developments on Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2019 in Cumming. (Photo: Brian Powers/The Register)

"Starting the farm first shows that we're committed to the 'agri-' part of the 'agrihood,'" said Fillius, Middlebrook's new vegetable farm manager.

The farm will anchor the project's town center or "town farm" as developer Steve Bruere calls it.

"We want people to know the farm is real. It's not just pretty drawings," said Bruere, a partner in Diligent Development, the group behind the project.

"At the end of the day, everyone wants to know what it means to be in an agrihood," he said. "It needs to be authentic."

Middlebrook's farm will have a farm stand inside a converted barn, showcase gardens with edible and native plantings, "you-pick" flower gardens, pumpkin patches and orchards, an "event green" for gatherings, and a large vegetable farm that visitors can walk and bike around.

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A couple acres of hops will be grown at the brewery slated to go into the renovated schoolhouse in Cumming. It's part of the $260 million "agrihood" under development there. The name of the brewing company hasn't yet been released. Contributed by Design Workshop

An Iowa brewer is planning to go into the renovated schoolhouse in Cumming, which is part of the $260 million planned "agrihood." The name of the company hasn't yet been released. Contributed by Design Workshop

The roughly $260 million Middlebrook development south of Cumming would be Iowa’s first “agrihood,” a planned community anchored by a working farm or community gardens. Diligent Development, the company behind the project, proposes building a town center that’s easily walkable for residents in the development. Trails, gardens, parks and ponds would be common links throughout the development’s neighborhoods. Design Workshop/Special to the Register

Steve Bruere, president of Diligent Development, stands on the land he's proposed be used for an agrihood development that would bring more housing to Cumming, on Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2019, in Warren County. An agrihood is a housing development built around an agricultural center and would provide the residents with a closer connection to their food. Kelsey Kremer/The Register

Inside an old schoolhouse that will be remodeled into a brewery as a part of the community development project Steve Bruere, a partner at Diligent Development, has proposed for the city of Cumming, on Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2019, in Warren County. Also planned to accompany the brewery is bicycle storage and a hops garden. Kelsey Kremer/The Register

Five hundred acres of land on the southern edge of Cumming is the proposed site of a new community development that would bring housing for hundreds of residents to Warren County. Kelsey Kremer/The Register

Kalen Ludwig, realtor for Peoples Company, stands inside a refurbished school planned to become a brewery as a part of Diligent Development's plan to bring more housing and retail to Cumming, on Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2019, in Warren County. Kelsey Kremer/The Register

Kalen Ludwig, realtor for Peoples Company, stands inside a refurbished school planned to become a brewery as a part of Diligent Development's plan to bring more housing and retail to Cumming, on Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2019, in Warren County.
Kelsey Kremer/The Register
Caption Override Kelsey Kremer/The Register

About 400 acres of land south edge of Cumming is the proposed site of a new community development that would bring housing for hundreds of residents to Warren County.
Kelsey Kremer/The Register
Caption Override Kelsey Kremer/The Register

Outside an old schoolhouse that will be remodeled into a brewery as a part of the community development project Steve Bruere, a partner at Diligent Development, has proposed for the city of Cumming, on Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2019, in Warren County. Also planned to accompany the brewery is bicycle storage and a hops garden. Kelsey Kremer/The Register

Inside an old schoolhouse that will be remodeled into a brewery as a part of the community development project Steve Bruere, a partner at Diligent Development, has proposed for the city of Cumming, on Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2019, in Warren County. Also planned to accompany the brewery is bicycle storage and a hops garden. Kelsey Kremer/The Register

One large Middlebrook neighborhood features a greenway path running through it, with gardens, trails and a community venue anchoring it. Altogether, the plan calls for a broad mix of about 700 homes in the project. Design Workshop/Special to the Register

Steve Bruere, president of Diligent Development, stands on the land he's proposed be used for an agrihood development that would bring more housing to Cumming, on Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2019, in Warren County. An agrihood is a housing development built around an agricultural center and would provide the residents with a closer connection to their food. Kelsey Kremer/The Register

Bruere is working on deals with a group that will operate the flower gardens and another one that wants to operate a wedding venue, a "you-pick" apple orchard and farm-to-table restaurant.

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Developer Steve Bruere wants to bring an agrihood to Iowa, but what is that?
Kelsey Kremer, kkremer@dmreg.com

He said getting the vegetable farm established as a self-supporting operation is key to the project. "We think we have an opportunity to build a for-profit, standalone business," he said.

In other agrihoods, the neighborhood associations help support the farms that provide the community with produce.

And Diligent Development is close to hammering out a deal with an Iowa craft brewer to move into its renovated 1900 schoolhouse where former U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, an Iowa Democrat, once attended school.

A couple acres of hops will be grown at the brewery slated to go into the renovated schoolhouse in Cumming. It's part of the $260 million "agrihood" under development there. The name of the brewing company hasn't yet been released.(Photo: Contributed by Design Workshop)

The brewery will feature a two-acre hops garden and outdoor seating.

The group plans to build a modern barn next door to house the brewing equipment and potentially provide rental bike storage for people wanting to jump on the Great Western trail.

Fillius, who also works as an Iowa State University Extension outreach produce safety specialist, has started selling produce at the farm.

He helped run a 140-acre organic vegetable farm in Minnesota before moving to Iowa. He will sell veggies to area restaurants and through Dogpatch Urban Gardens in Des Moines.

In addition to getting Middlebrook's town farm up and running, the development group is focused on bringing the agrihood feel to Great Western Crossing, the 140-acre, $112 million project already under construction just east of Cumming.

Middlebrook and Great Western Crossing will offer a broad mix of apartments, condos and townhomes, as well as cottage, family and estate homes.

Developers behind central Iowa's first agrihood, called Middlebrook, are focused on building out its "town farm." It's the anchor to the development that's designed to be easily walkable and bikeable.(Photo: Design Workshop)

They’ll range in price from $150,000 to $800,000, the developer says.

The group will use similar architecture — Cape Cod cottage, Hampton and modern, and traditional farmhouse styles — to connect the projects.

"We're putting together a landscaping plan so we know what the parks will look like, what the common area landscaping looks like," he said. "You won't see a difference between the developments in 10 years."

Bruere said homebuyer response to the two developments has been overwhelming, with a waiting list already building.

Over a decade, the two developments will push Cumming's population of 400 to about 2,000.

Fillius said he's excited about building the Middlebrook farm.

"I moved to Iowa because I saw the organic market is burgeoning here," said Fillius, a native Californian. "It's still growing."

Donnelle Eller covers agriculture, the environment and energy for the Register. Reach her at deller@registermedia.com or 515-284-8457.

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